When the Giants’ coaching staff sent him onto the field two weeks ago for the first defensive snap of his professional career, Moss sprinted from the sideline and directly toward the huddle. The crowd noise inside MetLife Stadium, the screaming of play calls inside the huddle – all of it should have overwhelmed the rookie defensive end, but none of it did.

Until the Chargers snapped the football. Then – only then – did his mind go blank.

“I was ready – I thought I was ready – but I was really lost, honestly,” Moss recalled this week at his locker. “I’m looking around, everyone’s running around, and I’m thinking, ‘Well, gotta just fake it.’

(Dec. 29, 2008) - TOMS RIVER: Work began Monday (Dec. 29) on the demolition of Old Time Tavern, an iconic business which included part of an 18th-century hotel in its structure. STAFF PHOTO: HARTRIONO B. SASTROWARDOYO
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The Old Time Tavern on Rt 166 is closed after 80 years. the sign on the front door says. AFTER 80 YEARS OF SERVING TOMS RIVER OLD TIME TAVERN IS CLOSED WE BID YOU FAREWELL AND THANK YOU Tim McCarthy/Asbury Park Press #75190 121008
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“And you can’t fake it in the NFL. You just can’t. That was my welcome-to-the-league moment.”

If Moss' welcome left the Giants questioning how far he had to go in order to become a contributor this season, believe it or not the play that showed just far he'd come happened in the fourth quarter of their 23-10 victory over the Broncos.

Just one week later, Moss made a key play on the rousing goal line stand in the Giants' stunning prime time upset in Denver. He stood up Broncos tight end Virgil Green, allowing teammate Janoris Jenkins to knife through and deck C.J. Anderson short of the end zone.

Moss finished the play by knocking Green completely over the pile

"I don't think that was the moment I showed I arrived," Moss added with a laugh. "But it showed I know what I'm doing and that I'm learning how to play this game as fast as I can."

Make no mistake: the Giants (1-6) are in a position where they need Moss to chip in with Olivier Vernon sidelined for a third straight game and Romeo Okwara having been placed on injured reserve with a knee injury this past week in advance of Sunday's game at MetLife Stadium against the Seattle Seahawks (3-2).

Jason Pierre-Paul had a "vintage JPP" game against the Broncos, registering three sacks, and Kerry Wynn was again solid - All-Pro defensive tackle Damon Harrison gave Wynn the credit for taking out a pair of blockers to set up his sack. But the difference up front for a defense taking on even more responsibility to deliver if Big Blue is to somehow get on an unexpected roll and make an improbable return into the playoff picture could be the coming-of-age of a first-year player like Moss a lot sooner than anticipated.

“He’s doing a good job. For a rookie, he’s stepping up big time,” Pierre-Paul said of Moss. “He’s got a lot on him, but you’ve got to step, when it’s your time to step up, you’ve got to step up. So, he’s doing a great job. I try to coach him up here and there on the field, but I think he gets it.”

Moss was inactive for the first four weeks before making his professional debut against the Chargers. He played 41 of the 81 defensive snaps in Denver (52 percent) and will likely get more playing time as the season progresses.

“Trying to get him to play to his abilities better and just try to emphasize the things he does right like the explosiveness, the get off. Things of that nature. Being violent with his hands. I mean, he knows that we’re counting on him a lot now. He has to grow up in terms of a football player,” Giants defensive line coach Patrick Graham said. “I think he’s pretty mature as a person and professional, but I’m looking forward to him getting an expanded role and playing more.

"Last week, what you saw from him – you saw the explosiveness, you saw whether it was the violence with the hands, the get off in the pass rush. The thing that was missing probably you would say is just the experience. Like, OK, you need to finish here. All right, you need to get into your transition quicker. And, all the things he can do is just the process as a young player, like being able to process it and being able to execute out there on the field at a faster pace. But, it’ll come. It’ll come out. That’s why we like him.”

Moss is quick to credit Pierre-Paul and Vernon for bringing him along. He has worked on improving the fundamental details of his technique after practice with Vernon on several occasions since training camp, while Pierre-Paul continues to offer motivational

"I can't thank OV and JPP enough for what they've done to help me get better," Moss said. "You work in a room with those two guys, two of the best in the business in terms of being complete edge players, you can learn a lot by just watching. But for me, they've made sure to help me every step of the way. I know the team is counting on me now, and I'm going to be ready for whatever they need. I'm confident that I can do that."